LILI REINHART
From Riverdale to Hustlers and Chemical Hearts
Lili Reinhart is one of the most famous faces on TV right now. She’s part of the hottest teen drama ever to hit cable television: Riverdale, based on Archie Comics. Teens openly obsess over it, while millennials talk about their addiction to it. Reinhart plays Betty, a sleuthing blonde who runs the school newspaper. She is independent and empowering even though she has an on-screen boyfriend, Bughead, played by her boyfriend IRL, Cole Sprouse.
Reinhart is bonafide famous now. If parents don’t watch the CW show, they still know who Reinhart is because of their children. But instant fame can be challenging.
“It’s so weird,” she told Allure in a stunning cover story. “I don’t really think about it until I’m around people. I don’t think about it until I see young women, because those are the people that recognize me. Then all of a sudden, I become very aware.”
With her enormous platform — the 23-year-old boasts 24.5 million followers on Instagram — she talks about mental health in an open and inspiring way. She told Allure that she wasn’t bullied growing up, but she felt incredibly alone. That was difficult for her parents to understand, so now she shows young people how to talk about it. Reinhart favors teaching children at a young age about mental health and how to communicate necessary feelings.
Reinhart’s first credit was in 2010, but after season one of Riverdale in 2017, the calls started coming in. Since then, she has appeared in major blockbusters like a Charlie’s Angels reboot and the feminist stripper flick Hustlers. In Hustlers, Jennifer Lopez and Constance Wu take her character under their wings. She’s young, naive and a little frantic, but she has the skills to take her to the next level. Reinhart is refreshing in the project.
Now, Reinhart has her first significant lead role in Amazon Studios’ Chemical Hearts. The teen rom-com is about first love. Reinhart stars opposite Euphoria’s Austin Abrams. It’s based on the novel Our Chemical Hearts by Krystal Sutherland and is a coming of age romance rolled into a beautifully filmed movie with amazing stars. They’re both coming from two of the hottest, raw teen dramas — a dynamic duo for sure.
Reinhart has found a way to tap into a hot commodity: Gen Z. She’s an engaging, vocal and insanely talented actress. She is at the beginning of a very lush and lucrative career.
